R919m incentive helps actor break 007 record

INTERNATIONAL - Daniel Craig will become the longest-serving 007 this week.

On Wednesday it will be 4527 days since his debut as Bond, with the release of Casino Royale on November 17, 2006.

The landmark takes him past Sir Roger Moore’s 4526-day tenure from 1973’s Live And Let Die to 1985’s A View To A Kill.

Craig, 50, has seemed unlikely to last after he said in 2015: "I would rather slash my wrists than play James Bond again". “Slash my wrists” then returned as Bond in 2016’s Spectre. But his reign is now set to last even longer, with the 25th Bond film next year. A reputed pay package of at least £50 million (R919m) is believed to have helped change his mind.

Sean Connery officially lasted only nine years as 007, from Dr No in 1962 to Diamonds Are Forever in 1971. Pierce Brosnan managed seven years and Timothy Dalton three, while George Lazenby starred only in one film. Craig’s next outing as Bond is set to be his fifth and final appearance in the series.